With that, he flashed sideways again as if teleporting, seemingly dodging something in haste.
The Azure-Robed Literatus, who had given his warning beforehand, had already struck, sweeping his fingers in a cutting gesture through the air without any visible force or fanfare.
A crack instantly appeared where the Gray-Robed Man had just been, like a fractured mirror, accompanied by a "twang" like a plucked string snapping.
Only after the crack appeared did a faint, barely discernible sword-shaped shadow of Gang Qi belatedly fade from view.
The strike seemed utterly unremarkable, but in the eyes of a true expert, this was the kind of attack whose power was truly terrifying.
It was just as Granny Qi had told Wu Jinliang after striking outside Dazhi City: a true expert would never fail to contain their power and cause such a tremendous commotion.
Only by concentrating destructive force at a single point could one unleash the greatest killing power.
When his first strike missed, the Azure-Robed Literatus stepped lightly forward and swept his fingers horizontally. Another mirror-bright crack slashed across the spot where the Gray-Robed Man dodged. It seemed to have struck him, yet his figure faded like a phantom.
Something like a shadow emerged from that phantom, taking shape as a new figure.
Surprise flashed through the Azure-Robed Literatus's eyes. He stepped away from the bookshelf and advanced lightly, as leisurely as a stroll through a courtyard. Wind stirred his wide sleeves, and his hands traced bewildering, illusory patterns through the air. Mirror-bright cracks instantly slashed horizontally, vertically, and diagonally, swift as commands that brooked no delay.
The sounds of snapping strings came as rapidly as rain, an endless succession of twangs.
Pedestrians stopped at the sound, gathering below the building and looking up. They had no idea what was happening in